BACKGROUNDWe aimed to use the animal model of dynamic fixation to examine the interaction of the pedicle screw surface with surrounding bone, and determine whether pedicle screws achieve good mechanical stability in the vertebrae.

METHODSTwenty-four goats aged 2-3 years had Cosmic ® pedicle screws implanted into both sides of the L2-L5 pedicles. Twelve goats in the bilateral dynamic fixation group had fixation rods implanted in L2-L3 and L4-L5. Twelve goats in the unilateral dynamic fixation group had fixation rods randomly fixed on one side of the lumbar spine. The side that was not implanted with fixation rods was used as a static control group.

RESULTSIn the static control group, new bone was formed around the pedicle screw and on the screw surface. In the unilateral and bilateral dynamic fixation groups, large amounts of connective tissue formed between and around the screw threads, with no new bone formation on the screw surface; the pedicle screws were loose after the fixed rods were removed. The bone mineral density and morphological parameters of the region of interest (ROI) in the unilateral and bilateral dynamic fixation group were not significantly different (P > 0.05), but were lower in the fixed groups than the static control group (P < 0.05). This showed the description bone of the ROI in the static control group was greater than in the fixation groups. Under loading conditions, the pedicle screw maximum pull force was not significantly different between the bilateral and unilateral dynamic fixation groups (P > 0.05); however the maximum pull force of the fixation groups was significantly less than the static control group (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSFibrous connective tissue formed at the bone-screw interface under unilateral and bilateral pedicle dynamic fixation, and the pedicle screws lost mechanical stability in the vertebrae.

Animals ; Bone Screws ; Goats ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; surgery ; Orthopedic Procedures ; methods ; Pedicle Screws

Objective To study the effects of erythrecyte on brain edema after traumatic intrace- rebral hemorrhage(TICH)and explore the mechanisms of erythrocyte in brain edema development follow- ing TICH.Methods Firstly,the brain injury model of SD rat was established by applying a free-fall- ing device,then whole blood(WB),lysed RBC(LRBC)or parked RBC(PRBC)were infused with ste- reotactic guidance into injured cortex to produce the model of TICH.All rats were killed at 1,3,and 5 days after injury.The brain water content was measured,immunohistochomistry(SABC)was applied to test HO-1 and TNF-?expressions.Results 1.In WB group,PRBC group and TBI group,the brain water content was the highest on the third day.The brain water content of LRBC group was markedly higher on the first day than on the third and fifth days.Comparison among the four groups showed the wa- ter content was the highest on the 1st day in LRBC group,and on the 3rd day in WB and PRBC groups; there was no significant difference among the four groups on 5th day.2.The positive expression of HO-1 and TNF-?coincided with the change of the water content in groups of WB,PRBC and LRBC.Conclu- sions In rat model of TICH,RBC plays an important role in delayed brain edema formation(3 days after injury),but has no influence at early stage(1 day after injury).The mechanisms of delayed brain edema involves RBC breakdown and inflammation reaction.

Objective To study the impacts of the Three Gorges dam and change of water level on the survival of the local rodents, and to provide scientific basis to control the outbreak of rodent-borne diseases.Methods Four villages located around the Three Gorges dam were selected in the study. The mouse populations by using Elton night trapping method was monitored. Metallic spring traps were set for two consecutive nights. The mouse density and identified the mouse species was calculated. The mouse species indoor and outdoor, as well as the mouse density indoor and outdoor were compared. The impacts of water level in the dam and cleaning work on local mouse density were also analyzed. Results A total of 678 mice were caught in this study, 517 were caught indoor and 161 outdoor. Indoor dominant species was flavipectus; accounting for 36.49%(189/517), while outdoor was apodemus, reaching 56.88% (91/161). For mouse species, there was a significant difference between indoor and outdoor(x2 = 678.00, P ＜ 0.01 ). The average mouse density was 8.44%(678/8036) in trap nights. Indoor mouse density reached 14.44%(517/3581 ), which was significantly higher than that of outdoor(3.61%, 161/4455 ).For mouse density, there was a significant difference between indoor and outdoor(x2 = 301.04, P ＜ 0.01 ). When the water level was up to 156 m, mouse density reached 10%(513/5132), which was higher than that of before (5.68%, 165/2904). There was a significant difference in mouse density before and after reserving water (x2 = 44.68, P ＜ 0.01 ). With the change of water level, upstream mouse density formed a high platform from May 2007 to May 2008, followed by 12.25%(80/653), 13.16%(90/684), 12.95%(90/695), and decreased to 8.38%(28/334) after cleaning of the dam. Conclusions The Three Gorges dam and change of water level actually alter the survival environment of the local mouse, and affect local mouse density and mouse species. These may lead to local outbreak or epidemic of rodent-borne diseases.

OBJECTIVETo study the expression of decoy receptor 3 (DcR3) and its relationship with apoptosis and prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

METHODSThe expression of DcR3 protein in 43 cases of HCC and 16 cases of non-cancerous liver (including cirrhotic liver tissue and normal liver tissue adjacent to cavernous hemangioma) was studied by immunohistochemistry (using EnVision method). The status of apoptosis was evaluated by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) technique. Statistic analysis was carried out to assess the correlation between DcR3 expression, apoptotic index (AI) and clinicopathologic parameters.

RESULTSDcR3 protein was expressed in the cytoplasm of HCC cells. The positivity rate of DcR3 in HCC was 74.42% (32/43), which was significantly higher than that in the non-cancerous group (43.75%, P < 0.05). The positivity rate of DcR3 in HCC with metastasis detected within 20 months of diagnosis was 100% (22/22). This was significantly higher than that in HCC without metastasis (52.94%, P < 0.01). The DcR3 expression in HCC also correlated with serum alpha-fetoprotein level (r = 0.444, P < 0.01) and presence of tumor embolus in portal vein (r = 0.414, P < 0.01). However it had no relationship with the patient's age, sex, cirrhotic status, liver capsule invasion, number of tumor nodules and histologic differentiation (P > 0.05). The AI in HCC (0.78 +/- 0.64)% was significantly lower than that in the non-cancerous group [(3.32 +/- 1.81)%, P < 0.01]. The AI in clinical TNM stage I and II tumors (1.03 +/- 0.69)% was significantly higher than that in stage III and IV tumors [(0.52 +/- 0.48)%, P < 0.01]. The AI in HCC without metastasis (1.10 +/- 0.72)% was significantly higher than that in HCC without metastasis [(0.44 +/- 0.27)%, P < 0.05]. The AI correlated with serum alpha-fetoprotein level (r = -0.468, P < 0.01), presence of tumor embolus in portal vein (r = -0.434, P < 0.01) and liver capsule invasion (r = -0.331, P < 0.05). On the other hand, it had no relationship with patient's age, sex, cirrhotic status, number of tumor nodules and histologic differentiation (P > 0.05). The AI in DcR3-positive group (including both HCC and non-cancerous tissues) was significantly lower than that in DcR3-negative group (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSThe expression of DcR3 in HCC correlates with apoptosis of tumor cells and may play a crucial role in tumor pathogenesis and progression. DcR3 protein expression and AI may also serve as important biologic indicators in predicting prognosis of HCC.

Adult ; Aged ; Apoptosis ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; metabolism ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; In Situ Nick-End Labeling ; Liver Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; Neoplasm Staging ; Prognosis ; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor, Member 6b ; metabolism ; physiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

Recently, phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN) is suggested as a new agent in the fighting against fibrogenesis. In tumor, DJ-1 is identified as a negative regulator of PTEN. But the expression of DJ-1 and the regulation of PTEN in fibrosis are unclear. Renal fibrosis was induced in 5/6 subtotal nephrectomy rat model. Human proximal tubular epithelial cells (HKC) were treated with transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1), or transfected with DJ-1 or PTEN. Confocal microscope was used to investigate the localization of DJ-1 and PTEN. The selective phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K) inhibitor, LY294002, was administered to inhibit PI3K pathway. The DJ-1 and PTEN expression, markers of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and Akt phosphorylation were measured by RT-PCR, Western blotting or immunocytochemistry. In vitro, after HKC cells were stimulated with 10 ng/mL TGF-β1 for 72 h, the expression of DJ-1 was increased, and that of PTEN was decreased. In vivo, the same results were identified in 5/6-nephrectomized rats. In normal HKC cells, most of DJ-1 protein localized in cytoplasm, and little in nucleus. TGF-β1 upregulated DJ-1 expression in both cytoplasma and nuclei. In contrary, TGF-β1 emptied cytoplasmic PTEN protein into nucleus. Overexpression of DJ-1 decreased the expression of PTEN, promoted the activation of Akt and the expression of vimentin, and also led to the loss of cytoplasmic PTEN. Contrarily, overexpression of PTEN protected HKC cells from TGF-β1-induced EMT. In conclusion, DJ-1 is upregulated in renal fibrosis and DJ-1 mediates EMT by suppressing cytoplasmic PTEN expression and Akt activation.

Mandible defect is a difficult issue in dental surgery owing to limited therapeutic options. Recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP2) is osteoinductive in bone regeneration. This article prepared chitosan/collagen hydrogels with rhBMP2-incorporated gelatin microsphere (GMs) for a sustained release of rhBMP2 to induce bone regeneration in rabbits. In experiments, mandibular defects of 8 mm in diameter and 3 mm in depth were surgically prepared on the right cheek of 27 rabbits. Either chitosan/collagen hydrogels alone, rhBMP2-incorporated hydrogels, or hydrogels with rhBMP2-incorporated GMs were implanted to the defect sites. The animals were euthanized at 2, 6, 12 weeks following surgery. In results, scanning electronic microscope images revealled spherical GMs. The complex delivery systems, hydrogels with rhBMP2-incorporated GMs, exhibited ideal release profiles in vitro. The complex delivery systems resulted in apparent new bone formation within 12 weeks, as evidenced by computed tomography and histological observations. All these results demonstrated that the chitosan/collagen hydrogels with rhBMP2-incorporated GMs had a better capacity to heal mandible defects than other two hydrogel scaffolds. Chitosan/collagen hydrogels with rhBMP2-incorporated GMs might be potential carriers of rhBMP2 for accelerating the repair of mandibular defects.
Animals ; Bone Regeneration ; Bone Substitutes ; Cheek ; Dental Implants ; Gelatin ; Humans ; Hydrogel* ; Hydrogels* ; In Vitro Techniques ; Mandible ; Microspheres* ; Osteogenesis ; Rabbits

OBJECTIVETo explore the follow-up visit, outcome and auxiliary diagnosis method on the cases with indeterminate antibody level measured by Western blotting as well as the related biological factors.

METHODSThe cases with indeterminate result were followed up according to the National Guideline for Detection of HIV/AIDS (2009) and samples were collected for HIV antibody detection, p24 antigen and nucleic acid were detected as a supplementary diagnosis at the same time. The samples were also be detected for HBV, HCV, TP, HTLV-I/II, ANA, and AFP, and the results were compared to that of screened positive and confirmed negative cases.

RESULTSA total of 73 were followed up successfully and taken a second HIV test, 25 cases were tested positive and 48 were tested negative for HIV during the follow-up period. For the 25 HIV positive cases, the HIV seroconversion rate was 100.00% at any time point when the interval between the first and returning detection was longer than 1 week. The major Western blotting bands for the cases with indeterminate result were p24 and gp160 and it was different between HIV positive and negative cases in Western blotting band profiles. The consistency and sensitivity of nucleic acid detection were higher than 90.00%, and were higher than that of p24 antigen (69.09% (38/55) and 27.27% (6/22)) (χ(2)(consistency) = 6.875, χ(2)(sensitivity) = 18.893, P < 0.05). The positive rates of ANA and AFP of indeterminate cases excluded from HIV infection were 20.83% (10/28) and 6.25% (3/48) and higher than that of screened positive and confirmed negative cases (0.00%), the difference had statistic significance (χ(2)(ANA) = 19.430, χ(2)(AFP) = 5.520, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONIt is critical to get timely diagnosis for the indeterminate cases according to the new national guideline for detection of HIV/AIDS. Nucleic acid detection has higher application value as auxiliary diagnosis for HIV infection than p24 antigen. The increased levels of ANA and AFP may be the factors resulting in the nonspecific indeterminate results.

Antibodies, Antinuclear ; blood ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; HIV Antibodies ; blood ; HIV Infections ; diagnosis ; immunology ; Humans ; Male ; alpha-Fetoproteins ; analysis

AIMThe anti-gastric ulcer constituents from the roots of Crepis napifera (Franch) Babc (Compositae) were studied.

METHODSSolvent partition, Si gel and Rp-18 column chromatography, crystallization and spectral methods were used to extract, isolate and identify two compounds. The activity of compound 1 was tested on the rat stomach by determining the effect on aspirin-induced gastric lesions and on histamine-stimulated gastric acid secretion.

RESULTSTwo sesquiterpene lactone glycosides, taraxinic acid-1'-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (1) and 11,13-dihydro-taraxinic acid-1'-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (2) were obtained. Compound 1 at the dose of 80 mg.kg-1 p.o. inhibited significantly the development of aspirin-induced gastric lesions in the rat and at an i.v. dose of 70 mg.kg-1 did not affect histamine-stimulated gastric acid secretion in the lumen-perfused rat stomach.

CONCLUSIONCompound 1 is the active component of the plant which protects gastric mucosa and exhibits anti-gastric ulcer action.

Animals ; Anti-Ulcer Agents ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Aspirin ; Crepis ; chemistry ; Disease Models, Animal ; Female ; Gastric Acid ; secretion ; Gastric Mucosa ; secretion ; Male ; Molecular Conformation ; Molecular Structure ; Plant Roots ; chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Rats, Wistar ; Sesquiterpenes ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Stomach Ulcer ; chemically induced ; drug therapy

Objective To explore the effect of dendritic cells (DC) modified with transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) gene on the expressions of CD28/CTLA-4:B7 costimulatory molecules in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in the Lewis rats with experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG). Methods Thirty inbreeding line, healthy, female Lewis rats were divided randomly into 6 groups: normal group, EAMG group, DC treatment group, pcDNA3-TGF-β1-DCtreatment group, pcDNA3-DC control group and normal saline group. The rats were immunized with the AChR protein extracted from electric organ of Narcine timilei and CFA in the groups except normal group. 2×106 pcDNA3-TGF-β1-DCs/rat were injected subcutaneously into the backs of the rats which had been immunized 5 d earlier with AChR+CFA. The rats in DC treatment group, pcDNA3-DC control group and normal saline group were injected in parallel with untreated DC, pcDNA3-DC and normal saline, respectively. Seven weeks after the first immunization, the expressions of CD28 mRNA and CTLA-4 mRNA were detected by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and the levels of B7-1 and B7-2 on the surface of PBMC were examined using flow cytometry. Results (1)The low expression of CD28 mRNA and rare expression of CTLA-4 mRNA were found in the normal rats, and both expressions increased markedly in EAMG rats (P＜0.001). Compared to those in EAMG group, the expression of CD28 mRNA decreased and CTLA-4 mRNA was upregulated after the treatment with pcDNA3-TGF-β1-DC (P＜0.05). There was no significant difference in the expressions of CD28 mRNA and CTLA-4 mRNA among the EAMG group, DC treatment group, pcDNA3-DC control group and normal saline group (P＞0.05). (2) The expressions of CD28, CTLA-4, B7-1 and B7-2 on the surface of PBMC were rare in normal rats, which increased significantly in EAMG rats (P＜0.001). The levels of CD28, B7-1 and B7-2 in pcDNA3-TGF-β1-DC group were lower than those in EAMG group (P＜0.01), but the level of CTLA-4 was higher than that in EAMG group (P＜0.05). They showed no statistically difference among the EAMG group, DC treatment group, pcDNA3-DC control group and normal saline group (P＞0.05). Conclusions The expressions of CD28/CTLA-4:B7 costimulatory molecules are abnormal in the rats with EAMG. The regulation of CD28/CTLA-4:B7 costimulatory pathways may play a critical role in the mechanism of the treatment with DC transfected with pcDNA3-TGF-β1 in the incipient EAMG rats.

Objective To explore the relationship between gray matter heterotopia and epilepsy and assess the therapeutic effect of surgical intervention. Methods Six cases of gray matter heterotopia-induced epilepsy treated in our department between May, 2004 and May, 2006 were analyzed retrospectively for the clinical characteristics, surgical approaches, and the outcomes in the 2- to 4-year-long follow-up. Results All the patients received surgical interventions through different approaches, including resection of the heterotopic gray matter plus bipolar coagulation of the cortexes in 4 cases, heterotopic gray matter resection with bipolar coagulation of the cortexes and temporal lobectomy in 1 case, and exclusive bipolar coagulation of the cortexes in 1 case. Five patients were free of seizure attach and 1 patient showed significantly reduced seizure attack after the operation. Conclusion Surgical intervention can be effective for treatment of intractable epilepsy induced by gray matter heterotopia.